BILL REQ. #:  H-0703.1 

Read first time 01/22/2007.   Referred to Committee on Education.

     AN ACT Relating to educational data and data systems; amending RCW 28A.410.070; adding new sections to chapter 28A.320 RCW; adding new sections to chapter 28A.300 RCW; adding a new section to chapter 28A.410 RCW; and creating a new section.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   The legislature finds that:
     (1) Reliable data on student progress, characteristics of students and schools, and teacher qualifications and mobility is critical for accountability to the state and to the public;
     (2) Educational data should be made available as widely as possible while appropriately protecting the privacy of individuals as provided by law;
     (3) School districts and the office of the superintendent of public instruction need robust and compatible data systems and programs to reduce inefficiencies caused by the lack of connectivity and to minimize or eliminate multiple data entry; and
     (4) Schools and districts should be supported in their management of educational data and should have access to user-friendly programs and reports that can be readily used by classroom teachers and building principals to improve instruction.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 2   A new section is added to chapter 28A.320 RCW to read as follows:
     Each school district shall collect and electronically submit to the office of the superintendent of public instruction, in a format and according to a schedule prescribed by the office, the following minimum data elements:
     (1) No later than the beginning of the 2008-09 school year and thereafter:
     (a) For each class or course offered in each school:
     (i) The certification number or other unique identifier associated with the teacher's certificate for each teacher assigned to teach the class or course, including reassignments that may occur during the school year;
     (ii) The statewide student identifier for each student enrolled in or being provided services through the class or course;
     (iii) The grade level or grade span of the class or course; and
     (iv) Where applicable, the subject matter of the class or course;
     (b) For each teacher assigned to teach a class or course, an indicator of whether the teacher meets the definition of "highly-qualified" under P.L. 107-110, the no child left behind act of 2001, and the manner by which the teacher meets the definition.
     (2) No later than the beginning of the 2009-10 school year and thereafter:
     (a) For each class or course offered in each secondary school, a course code based on the classification of secondary school courses by the national center for education statistics, which shall also be recorded on the transcript of each secondary student enrolled in the class or course;
     (b) The class schedule for each student enrolled in each secondary school; and
     (c) The class schedule for each teacher providing instruction in each secondary school.
     (3) No later than the beginning of the 2010-11 school year and thereafter:
     (a) Human resource data related to attrition and mobility of teachers and other certificated instructional and administrative staff, with elements defined by the office of the superintendent of public instruction in collaboration with the professional educator standards board; and
     (b) For each applicable student, the student's scores on college placement tests, college entrance exams, and advanced placement tests.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 3   A new section is added to chapter 28A.300 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) The superintendent of public instruction shall develop definitions and protocols for the collection and submission by school districts of the data elements required under section 1 of this act.
     (2) The data elements required under section 1 of this act are minimum elements and do not represent the only data elements that the office of the superintendent of public instruction may require school districts to collect and submit for purposes of reporting enrollment, assessment, financial, personnel, or other information as required by law, rule, or policies adopted by the office.
     (3) The timelines for collection and submission of data established under section 1 of this act do not preclude the office of the superintendent of public instruction from pilot testing collection and submission of data elements with school districts before the elements are required from all districts.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 4   A new section is added to chapter 28A.300 RCW to read as follows:
     No later than the beginning of the 2007-08 school year, the office of the superintendent of public instruction shall develop standards for school data systems that focus on validation and verification of data entered into the systems to ensure accuracy and compatibility of data. The standards shall address but are not limited to the following topics:
     (1) Date validation;
     (2) Code validation, which includes gender, race or ethnicity, and other code elements;
     (3) Decimal and integer validation; and
     (4) Required field validation as defined by state and federal requirements.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 5   A new section is added to chapter 28A.320 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) By the beginning of the 2008-09 school year and thereafter, any student information system used by a school district to collect and submit data to the office of the superintendent of public instruction must meet the standards established by the office under section 4 of this act.
     (2) By the beginning of the 2010-11 school year and thereafter, all school data systems used by school districts to collect and submit data to the office of the superintendent of public instruction must meet the standards established by the office under section 4 of this act.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 6   A new section is added to chapter 28A.410 RCW to read as follows:
     Each program leading to educator certification that is approved by the professional educator standards board under RCW 28A.410.210 shall assign a unique identifier, in a format prescribed by the office of the superintendent of public instruction, to each candidate at the beginning of the candidate's enrollment in the program.

Sec. 7   RCW 28A.410.070 and 1983 c 56 s 12 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) All certificates issued by the superintendent of public instruction shall be valid and entitle the holder thereof to employment in any school district of the state upon being registered by the school district if designated to do so by the school district, which fact shall be evidenced on the certificate in the words, "Registered for use in . . . . . . district," together with the date of registry, and an official signature of the person registering the same: PROVIDED, That a copy of the original certificate duly certified by the superintendent of public instruction may be used for the purpose of registry and endorsement in lieu of the original.
     (2) The superintendent of public instruction may accept applications for educator certification that are submitted using an electronic signature from the applicant.

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 8   A new section is added to chapter 28A.300 RCW to read as follows:
     (1) The office of the superintendent of public instruction and educational service districts shall provide training to school and school district personnel on:
     (a) The importance of accurate and timely collection and submission of educational data;
     (b) Troubleshooting potential data problems and common errors;
     (c) Maintaining appropriate privacy and confidentiality of data; and
     (d) Ways to use educational data to inform decision making and classroom instruction.
     (2) By the beginning of the 2008-09 school year, the office of the superintendent of public instruction shall develop and disseminate recommended guidelines for training, professional development, certification, and compensation of school data quality specialists.